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Over two weeks, participants of the Isopod species discovery workshop worked through hundreds of specimens collected from expeditions ranging from Madagascar and New Zealand to the Arctic. The results were astonishing!

Following the Ocean Census-JAMSTEC expedition, scientists have confirmed the discovery of 38 new species and identified 28 further potential new species across two of Japan’s most understudied deep-sea regions: the Nankai Trough and the Shichiyo Seamount Chain.

Researchers identified two new deep-sea hesionid species, Dalhousiella yabukii and Leocratides watanabeae, living symbiotically in the same hexactinellid sponge. Their findings reveal independent convergent adaptations to sponge hosts and provide new insights into the evolution and diversification of sponge symbiosis in Hesionidae.

A new trematode genus, Sagaratrema, is proposed for liolopid parasites of marine snakes. Three new species from Sri Lanka are described alongside three reassigned species, while Harmotrema is revised. Genetic and morphological evidence supports their distinct evolutionary history and marine specialization.

In a bustling workshop room in Senckenberg am Meer, the air hums with the soft excitement of species discovery. Here, early-career researchers from across the world, as well as mid-career to retired experts, have gathered for a species discovery workshop, united by a shared fascination of isopods.

A new deep-sea tardigrade genus and species, Ranarctus kondoi, is described from 596–606 m depth near Okinawa, Japan. Its distinctive morphological features differentiate it from related Parmursa, expanding knowledge of the deep-sea-exclusive Euclavarctinae.

A new sponge family, Spinulariidae, is proposed for small, deep-sea polymastiid sponges lacking a secondary cortical layer. Integrative taxonomy and phylogenetic analyses support the family, while several genera are synonymised under Spinularia, highlighting the overlooked diversity and evolutionary importance of inconspicuous sponges.

Building on the success of our co-founder Nekton’s First Descent: Comoros 2025 mission, this Species Discovery Workshop took place at the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB) in Makhanda from January 26 to February 13, 2026.

They say that two is better than one, and for some marine species, living as a pair means that they are able to survive, adapt, and thrive in complex and often challenging underwater environments.